Apple Car self-driving expert takes talents to autonomous sensor firm after six months on the job

Apple has lost yet another member of the Project Titan team working on its ambitious plans for a fully self-driving electric car. According to a new report from Bloomberg, Christopher (CJ) Moore has departed Apple after less than a year on the job. Prior to his short stint at Apple, Moore served as a director of Tesla’s Autopilot team.

Apple Car departures continue

Moore is leaving Apple’s self-driving car team to join Luminar, a startup that says it is “building the future of transportation.” The company’s goal is to “make autonomous transportation safe and ubiquitous” by enabling the “first real-world deployments of autonomy and next-generation safety features at scale.”

At Luminar, Moore will lead the software team to developer autonomous safety features, which will be integrated into the company’s LiDAR technology. Luminar confirmed the hire in a statement on Wednesday. The company also confirmed that it has hired away top executives from Nvidia, Tesla, and other companies.

“With industry-defining technology and now nearly a dozen major commercial wins in hand, Luminar is ready for its next phase of leadership as we focus all-in on execution,” said Luminar Founder and CEO, Austin Russell. “We’re attracting the best leaders in the world in their fields to execute our vision and deliver on the future of transportation.”

Moore is the latest in a long stream of departures from the Apple Car team. Last year, Ford poached Doug Field from Apple. Field worked at Apple until 2013 when he was hired by Tesla to help lead the production ramp of the Model 3. He landed back at Apple in 2018 to work on the Apple Car project before departing for Ford in September.

Earlier this month, it was reported that Apple hired Desi Ujkashevic, a 31-year Ford veteran, to help lead the Apple Car project. Apple’s VP of technology, Kevin Lynch, is believed to be spearheading most of the Apple Car team.

Apple’s current goal is to launch an electric car with full self-driving capabilities by 2025. The company reportedly believes that its self-driving car technology will be so reliable that its car will not have a traditional steering wheel and pedals.